I am fairly confident that I
am not going to change the world, but I definitely change my world and my
perspective when I write. Perspective is a brilliant tool of interpretation and
reality that must be qualified with an open mind or result in the drowning of
the visionary in their own idealism.
Please see the hard line tones of the far left and far right of US
politics, having gained the reins of power in very tenuous perception of
majority = mandate.
Similarly the reins of power
held by the Papacy 500 years ago was ripe for the internal queries of naked
human power and greed by those willing to give voice to the observed ills. Fast forward 270 years and the power of the vocal
few incites a revolution that fundamentally altered the way the world sees
Democracy and just 95 years ago the power of the people swung so far as to
entertain an 80 year period of Communism.
Why does this matter? Look at
Luther and Calvin; or Henry, Paine and Jefferson; or Marx, Lenin and Mao. What is their commonality? They had ideas and observations in their
heads that they needed to release. If other
people understood them, if they made sense and wrote pieces that became
rallying cries for change and rapid revolutions of necessity because evolution
was too slow. But more than that they
wrote because they needed to give voice to those situations they felt to be
wrong or unjust. They did not write
about the problems, but they identified them and promoted possible plans of
action. They even espoused the concept
of Common Sense over accepted doctrine and blind obedience and fealty.
But what is the risk of speaking
one’s mind. Ridicule, disdain, anger,
bigotry, pain. . . . I have felt all in the past week. While I wrote of Evan and his journey, his
situation meant afforded me a shield.
With Evan’s situation resolved, I write with a sharper pen, not laced
with poison, sarcasm and cynicism; by pen seems to cut like a scythe, leave the
fallen grain to be winnowed by fork and wind.
But sometimes there is light in the darkness that a step taken by anyone
can spur on a cascade of steps by others.
Today I was bathed in some of that light as I met with a friend for
coffee and they desired to be authentic and share.
I almost fell out of my chair
laughing when I heard this. My friend is
about as authentic and genuine as a person can be. He loves his wife, his kids, the dogs, his
job and Jesus. Not necessarily in that
order, but he has never hidden his feelings on any subject with me, even the
subjects we disagree on. That is why he
is such a good friend because he keeps an open mind and does not condemn me for
a different point of view. I encouraged
him to write, to get his thoughts into the sphere of appropriate influence.
Ah yes, The Sphere of
Appropriate Influence. There is a story
of a big tent country revival in the farming bible belt of the United States of
America. For all those reading outside the
USA, please envision your most backward, straw in mouth, Praise Jesus,
Hallelujah and pass the biscuits sort of picture. And every God fearing man and woman from
three counties came each night for this event of Hellfire, Brimstone and Altar
Call worship. And one single farmer came
each night to this revival and he was stirred by the preaching, praying and
singing, and for each of the first 4 of 5 nights he gradually moved seats from
the back toward the front.
On the fifth night of the
revival, after the sermon concluded, the pastor called for public confessions
and repentance by the faithful, just as he had done the previous 4 nights. And just as had happened on the previous
nights, the congregation, hands raised, singing with the choir shouted out
their sins of greed and gossip, bad living and foul mouthed antics. And to everyone, the pastor yelled back his
encouragement of cleansing and peace.
The single farmer was so moved that he finally stood and yelled, “I have
drunk too much hard liquor!” and the preacher cried out, “We feel your pain, let
it out!” and the farmer encouraged and
feeling the power in the moment confessed loudly, “I have fornicated with loose
women and gambled away my money!” and the preacher also sensing the power of
the moment replies, “Jesus loves you, let it all out!” and the farmer did, “And
I have slept with my sheep!”
The tent is instantly silent,
the farmer standing and beaming like a prize rooster, the choir is slack jawed,
open mouths gaping and every person in the tent looking at the man. The preacher walks over to the man and
quietly whispers, “I don’t believe I would have let that out!”
What is it about daylight in
a dark space on someone else’s public authenticity about the unshared/unsharable
that scares us or inspires us to keep watching the slow motion car wreck? Where is the call to action? And if the hue and cry are raised why do we
or do we not respond?
“I cannot choose but adhere
to the word of God, which has possession of my conscience; nor can I possibly,
nor will I even make any recantation, since it is neither safe nor honest to
act contrary to conscience! Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise, so help me
God! Amen.”
― Martin Luther
― Martin Luther
King David is one of history’s
great mysteries. Lauded in the bible for
his military skill and for being a man after God’s own heart, he was not
accepted as a real figure of history in secular circles until 1993. But it is not his greatness but his failing
that is of interest to Nathan, an observer.
It is this reference that I share with my friend. Someone has to tell the world that the Emperor
is not wearing any cloths, why not you? If
there is pressure to recant, ask yourself why is there a push back, what do the
powers that be have to fear the light of day.
This isn’t uncovering bestiality, at best it is an open discussion of
poor choices reached hastily without due diligence or in the name of pride or
prestige that pale in comparison to future health and safety.
“Reason is a whore, the
greatest enemy that faith has; it never comes to the aid of spiritual things,
but more frequently than not struggles against the divine Word, treating with
contempt all that emanates from God.”
― Martin Luther
― Martin Luther
I leave you with this quote
to contemplate and comment upon. I have
just received comment in another forum that our progress as a race is built
upon the reasoning and rationalizing of the collective sum of humanity as it
sways between the dichotomy of pure good and pure evil. Where is Pascal and his damned square of
Divine reason. But that is for another day.
For the sake of argument I will forgoes exposition of a coupling of Jefferson and Mao. Quite an interesting pairing, yet there still finds me questioning how the Chairman would view yyour central statement. Methinks he would reject your supposition that expression should be encouraged. Actually, other than Luther, the host of characters mentioned shared a deep apprehension of a literate and expressive populace. They all feared the path free expression would take for divergent reasons. What would our good Chairman have made of you? And what is your analysis of how that squares with the response you have thus received?
ReplyDeleteThe chairman would view the premise with admiration of thought, consternation of consequence, would determine that I did not have the best interests of party or people in my heart. He would then bill my family for the bullet destined for my brain. This only because power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The risk for the revolutionary is in becoming the establishment that it intended to overthrow.
ReplyDeleteThe response I have received thus far makes me glad to be a citizen of the USA, as it is I have an appointment with the chairman to discuss my commitment to the party apparatus tomorrow.
The distillation of my stand is about bridges, a topic close to your heart. I will be asked if I am burning them, building them or redesigning them.
It is in the short term interest of governing powers to diminish and quell any movement that might upset the status quo rather than embracing change. Historically the most long standing concepts of governance and leadership are those that embrace criticism and outside perspective. But like our relationship with God, it is hard to see we are at essence sinful, and that we are in need of both confession and repentance.